Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Gatto introduces bill to protect cities from dog park-related claims

Five years ago, Grassroots organizers from throughout the region began working together to create a dog park in Crescenta Valley. I was happy to help those organizors pursue their goal and last October, I was honored to be part of the ribbon cutting ceremony that officially opened the park to the public. Now I'm authoring AB 265, a bill that would make it easier for small and medium-sized communities across California to open dog parks. Daniel Siegal of the Glendale News-Press wrote the following article about the challenges to small and medium-sized communities who want to build dog parks, how AB 265 would address them. He also provided a recent photo of local residents (and their furry friends) taking advantage of the Crescenta Valley Dog Park

Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D-Silver Lake) has introduced a bill that would limit the liability of local governments that operate dog parks.

AB 265 would also require cities and counties to post signs warning users that they enter a dog park at their own risk, Gatto said in a statement.

(Times Community News / February 11, 2013)

Under current law, cities can be subject to massive liability claims filed by people who they were unaware of the potential dangers, such as dog bites, that can occur at dog parks, according to Gatto’s office.

“By offering our communities a more sensible set of laws on this issue, we can help make more dogs parks available in more neighborhoods,” he said.

Mike Gatto is the Chairman of the Appropriations Committee of the California State Assembly. He represents Burbank, Glendale, La Canada-Flintridge, La Crescenta, Montrose, and the Los Angeles neighborhoods of Los Feliz, Silver Lake, Atwater Village, and portions of the Hollywood Hills and East Hollywood. www.asm.ca.gov/gatto

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